ben rohrbach

Defending Danny Ainge as Celtics fireworks fizzle

The fireworks Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck promised are nowhere to be seen and no showy display appears on the horizon, so Danny Ainge has come under some fire.

But can you really blame Ainge? The C’s president made no such promises. NBA franchises aren’t rebuilt in a year. It’s a grievous process shrouded in assets and wealth management, and to give fans a reason to believe otherwise is misleading.

As a venture capitalist, Grousbeck should understand. Behind closed doors, he must regret his now infamous vow. Obviously, C’s owners want a winning product even more than the most faithful fans, since a few more seats sold never hurts the bottom line, but Ainge isn’t about to let fandom get in the way of good business practice.

Don’t get me wrong. Ainge’s offseason has been a dud. The lottery went off without a bang. The Kevin Love sweepstakes fizzled. His biggest move in free agency thus far has been a four-year, $32 million deal to retain Avery Bradley -- a fair contract, no doubt, but hardly an explosive signing. And the trade for Marcus Thornton, Tyler Zeller and another first-round pick was more bottle rocket than Roman candle.

Ainge understood LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony weren’t fleeing the glamour of Miami and New York for the glory days of Boston. (If only LeBron had grown up in Worcester or Seth MacFarlane could’ve promised La La a speaking part in "Ted 2.")

Looking down the list, Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki, Tim Duncan, Kyle Lowry and Marcin Gortat all stayed put, so it’s hard to point a finger at Ainge, even if he tried to pry one away, since all other general managers also failed in that regard.

As appealing as Chandler Parsons or Gordon Hayward may have been, is either worth $15 million-$16 million? Likewise, had 30-somethings Paul Pierce and Pau Gasol expressed interest in Boston, would either make sense in a rebuilding project?

A few years from now, Ainge may rue not rolling the dice on Lance Stephenson for three years and $27 million. But the Celtics gambled instead on Bradley, whose restricted free agency made his services easier to retain, and betting on a 23-year-old with All-Defensive talent and an improved jump shot may pay off just the same.

Greg Monroe and Eric Bledsoe remain far-fetched sign-and-trade possibilities at best, especially since the Pistons have pledged to match any offer for the former and the latter already is asking for Rajon Rondo money with nowhere near the résumé.

Instead, the Celtics president took advantage of Cleveland’s LeBron reunion, amassing an expiring $8.6 million contract, an affordable 24-year-old 7-footer and a ninth first-round pick over the next four years for a top-55 protected second-round pick and a $10.3 million trade exception that would have expired anyway.

While the deal essentially removed the Celtics from consideration for any of the league’s top 75 free agents this summer, all three assets arguably are more valuable moving forward than a Jodie Meeks for $19.5 million over the next three seasons.

After all, an Isaiah Thomas or Greivis Vasquez wouldn’t have accomplished anything but making the C’s a bit more mediocre, and that’s the worst that could happen. In Boston, the goal should always be championship or bust, and few players would launch the Celtics into that conversation. Even fewer would consider wearing green.

So, don’t criticize Ainge for the lack of fireworks this summer. In a year’s time, he’s positioned himself to bid for every star that hits the trading block while creating enough cap space to sign anyone on the open market in 2015. That’s no small task.

Instead, point the finger at Grousbeck for setting such flashy expectations. Unless, of course, the Celtics have been saving Kevin Love all along for a grand finale in August.

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